Chapter 16-Coming Together
Shane's P.O.V
Shane stops the truck outside the hardware store. Shane, Michonne, Martinez, Haley, Axel, and Alisha get out of the truck. They look at the herd pushed up against the fence. "So, what is the plan?" Axel asks.
"I haven't thought of one yet," Shane says. "How many walkers do you think we are dealing with?"
"20 to 40," Alisha says.
"Sounds about right," Martinez says.
"Okay, we'll kill as many as we can through the fence," Shane says. "No need to let them out until we need to," They nod as they pull their knives out. Michonne pulls out her katana, and they go up to the fence. The six of them start to kill the walkers through the fence. They kill about fifteen walkers before they start to pile up on each other.
"What now?" Axel asks.
"Martinez, Haley. Move to the truck. There are suppressors inside the bag in the back. Axel, Alisha, Michonne, and I will kill them down here," Shane says. Martinez and Haley nod as they go to the back of the truck. Shane walks to the bed and opens another bag with weapons. He pulls out a hatchet and hands it to Axel. He pulls out a fire ax and hands it to Alisha as he grabs a machete. He grabs bolt cutters and walks to the fence. "Everybody ready?" They all nod as Shane cuts the chain. Shane backs up as the walkers push the gates open. Martinez and Haley start to shoot the walkers as they walk towards the four of them. The six of them start to thin out the herd. Shane cuts off a walker's head as Michone cuts off two of their heads. Alisha slams the fire ax on top of one of the walker's heads as Axel kills another going towards Alisha. Shane brings his machete down on the last one's head.
"Now what?" Martinez asks as he jumps off the truck with Haley.
"We'll head back and bring a few cars to move the wood," Shane says. They all nod as they climb into the truck.
Merle's P.O.V
Merle walks to the room Rick was staying in with Carl and Lori. He knocks on the door. Lori opens the door and looks at him. "Hey, Merle," Lori says.
"Lori," Merle says. Rick stands up and looks at him.
"Lori, you should take Carl and explore the town," Rick says. Merle could see the worried expressions on Carl and Lori's faces. Merle unclips his gunbelt and throws it on the ground. He pulls the knife off of his hand and the metal prosthetic and puts them down. They all look at his stump.
"Again, thanks for the present. No weapons. Nobody gets hurt. I've become more conversational since my baby brother arrived," Merle says.
"Come on, Carl," Lori says. Carl nods as he follows Lori.
"He'll be just fine when you get back," Merle says as he walks inside. He shuts the door. "You gonna sit?" Rick nods as he sits down.
"So what happened after the roof?" Rick asks Merle.
"Well, after I got out of Atlanta. Philip found me while on a scouting mission. I was on the verge of death because of blood loss and starvation. I was thinking about putting a bullet through my mouth. Wait for Daryl on the other side. After I healed, I found a medical warehouse and made what you saw me take off," Merle says.
"I'm sorry about what happened," Rick says to him.
"T-dog and Daryl told me you came back," Merle says. Rick nods. "You put me through hell, officer friendly. And in return, you got your son, a wife, and a baby coming. When does karma kick in?" Merle asks.
"The baby isn't mine," Rick says.
"I know. It's Shane's," Merle says. "So tell me, officer friendly. What's changed from that rooftop and here?"
"I understand this world better," Rick says. Merle leans onto the table.
"Listen to me, officer friendly. You hurt anybody here in any way. I'll kill you. I'm alive because of T-dog. He chained that door shut and kept the walkers away. You're just the asshole who locked me up. I'm debating killing you right now. And the only reason I haven't is because of that boy and my brother. I'm trying to be better. Watch yourself, Rick Grimes. You are walking on thin ice," Merle tells Rick before he stands up and leaves the room. He grabs his weapons and leaves the building. Rick sighs as he leans back in his chair.
Daryl's P.O.V
Daryl sat in the infirmary and looked at Alice as she walked in. "How is Rosita doing?" Daryl asks.
"She'll be fine, Daryl. Let's have a look at you," Alice says. She takes the bandage off her arm and looks at the wound that was grazed. "You got lucky here,"
"Doesn't feel like it," Daryl says as Alice rewraps his arm.
"You okay?" Alice asks.
"No, I'm not okay. Those assholes almost killed us. I'm gonna kill 'em. I'm going to kill them all," Daryl says.
"Daryl, you need to heal," Alice says as she looks at his head. "Bullet went through," She says as she takes care of the wound. Daryl looks at Philip as he walks inside.
"Again, good to see you alive," Philip says. "In two days, we plan on taking out the rest of Alisha's group. I just wanted to let you know," Daryl nods. "Get better," He tells Daryl before he leaves.
"Get some rest. You need it," Alice tells Daryl, who nods as he lays down. Alice leaves the room.
Randall's P.O.V
Randall stood in a room with Dale. "We don't know what he'll do, Dale," Randall says to Dale.
"I know we don't. But it sounds like Shane has changed since then," Dale says. "We don't know how he'll act. Our group trusts you. We all do. You're one of us," Randall nods. "Now come on. Let's go explore the town,"
"Yeah, okay," Randall says as he follows Dale out of the room. They walk downstairs and see Maggie, Glenn, Hershel, and Beth in the lobby. "Why are you guys sitting here?"
"It felt nice," Glenn says. "You guys going to explore the town?"
"Yeah," Randall says.
"Come on. We can check in our Daryl while we are out," Dale says. The four of them nod as they stand. They walk outside and look around.
"Anybody know what happened here?" Glenn asks.
"Not much. I think they got attacked. I was talking to T-dog. They have a friend in a coma," Dale says. They nod as they see Tomas, Oscar, and Axel working on a wall.
"Found those three in a prison," T-dog says as he walks up to them.
"A prison?" Beth asks.
"Yeah, there is one a few miles from here. Morgan, Daryl, Shane, Daune, and I went into the prison to get supplies. We found Tomas, Oscar, Axel, Tiny, and Andrew in there," T-dog says.
"Where are Tiny and Andrew?" Maggie asks.
"Andrew died in the prison. Tiny is in a coma," T-dog says.
"And you guys trust a bunch of prisoners?" Maggie asks.
"You guys trust Randall. He shot at you and was your prisoner," T-dog says to them as they hear a truck. "Sounds like Shane is back," T-dog says as he walks towards the gate. "Rick, Lori, and Carl are by the gate with Morgan and Duane," They nod as they follow him.
Shane's P.O.V
Shane stops the car and gets out. "Shane," Rick says as he walks over to him. Shane looks at him.
"Rick," Shane says. He looks at Morgan. "Daryl and Rosita?"
"Rosita hurt her leg. Daryl got shot protecting her. Both of them are recovering," Morgan tells Shane, who nods as Carl goes over to Shane and hugs him. Shane smiles as he picks Carl up.
"Hey, little man," Shane says. Shane looks at Dale and could see Randall. "Let him join the group?"
"We needed more manpower. He's one of us," Rick says.
"Not my group. Your choice," Shane says as he sets Carl down. He looks at Michonne. "You should go see Andre," Michonne nods as she leaves. "How have you been?" Shane asks Lori.
"Good," Lori tells him. Shane nods.
"How did the hardware store go?" Abraham asks.
"Good. We should be able to get everything we need from it," Shane says. He hugs Rick. "We'll catch up later. But I need to check in on Daryl," Rick nods as Shane walks to the infirmary.
"When did Daryl and Shane become best friends?" Lori asks.
"My baby brother trusts Shane with his life," Merle says as he helps Martinez get the weapons out of the bed. "He's found his place here. They both have," Merle says as he throws the back around his bag. "Let's see if your place is here too," Merle says before he follows Martinez.
Shane walks into the infirmary and sees Daryl eating. "You like getting hurt, don't ya?"
"It isn't all bad. I get to lay in bed," Daryl tells Shane with a smirk. "You see 'em?"
"Yeah. I'm glad they are here. That Lori and the baby will be safe. That they all will be safe. But I was worried about my friend," Shane says. Daryl nods. "How long are you in here?"
"Till tomorrow," Daryl says as Hershel walks inside.
"Hey, boys," Hershel says.
"Hershel," Shane says as he looks at the man.
"I was wondering if I could talk to the doctors here," Hershel says.
"Back room. Talk to Alice and Stevens," Daryl tells him. Hershel nods as he walks past them.
"Get some sleep. It's getting late. I'm going to bed. I think everybody will be talking tomorrow," Shane says. Daryl nods as he lays down. Shane leaves.
Daryl's P.O.V
Daryl opens his eyes and looks at Rosita as she walks over to him with crutches. "You shouldn't be up," Daryl says to her as she sits down.
"I know, but I wanted to thank you," Rosita says.
"No, need," Daryl tells her.
"I would be dead if it wasn't for you, Daryl Dixon. You risked your life for someone you barely know," Rosita says. "Hell, your bike is trashed,"
"I can fix that," Daryl tells her. "I'm glad we both made it back alive, and we found my friends. They will be helpful in rebuilding this place,"
"I know you can fix it," Rosita says. "Most people would leave me to save themselves. You're a good man, Daryl,"
"I ain't a good man," Daryl tells her.
"Yes, you are. And I'll make you believe that," Rosita says. She kisses his head and goes back to her bed.
Rick's P.O.V
Rick knocked on Shane's door. Shane opens the door and looks at him. "What is it, Rick?"
"Can we talk?" Rick asks. Shane nods as he lets Rick into the room. "We weren't on the best terms the last time we saw each other,"
"I wasn't on good terms with any of you," Shane says as he sits down.
"You have done good with this place," Rick says.
"Philip started all this. We just helped," Shane says. "I'm tired. I'm going to go to bed," Rick nods as he stands up. "Rick," Rick turns around and looks at him. "I will be a part of that child's life. I don't care what you and Lori think. That is my child, and I will be a part of their life. And if you try to stop me. It won't turn out good for any of us. Do I make myself clear? That is my child. That clear?"
"Crystal," Rick says before he leaves the room. Shane lays down and goes to sleep.
Thanks for reading. This was a chapter bringing all the characters together. The next chapter will set up the future of Woodbury and other communities. This was a really fun chapter, and the next one will also be really fun with all the characters. Let me know if you want to see some certain character interactions. As always, suggestions, ideas, and feedback are welcomed. Until next time.
